The Gardena Municipal Bus Lines (GMBL) is a department within the City that operates as an enterprise fund. The department is distinguished from other City departments because it is not funded with General Fund monies and operates as an enterprise fund.

The Gardena Municipal Bus Lines provides Gardena residents with primary fixed route schedules and demand response vehicles which provide much needed mobility to many elderly and handicapped people in the area who otherwise would be unable to carry out the routines of their daily lives.

The Department has a fleet of 50 full-size diesel buses and 10 demand response vehicles. GMBL works with neighboring cities and the County of Los Angeles in a joint effort to develop and coordinate a functional regional transportation plan. Utilizing 40 peak hour buses, the GMBL is an integral part of the Los Angeles regional transit system. GMBL provides low cost, easily accessible public transportation for some 17,074 rides on an average weekday. By connecting with the Metro rail system (The Blue and Green Lines), the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) bus system, and other area municipal bus services, riders can easily commute throughout the South Bay into downtown Los Angeles and to a variety of surrounding locations.

Major divisions of the Department are:

Administrative Services
Provides the administrative, financial, managerial, clerical, and operational support services necessary to achieve the goals and objectives of the Department. These include records management, reporting, funding, and procurement services.

Special Transit/Elderly and Handicap Program
Provides portal-to-portal service (demand/response service) for the elderly and handicapped who qualify under predetermined program guidelines. This service is operated with a fleet that is 100% wheelchair accessible. The system augments the regular fixed-route and commuter services and currently serves the cities of Gardena and Hawthorne and the Alondra Park and Del Aire sections of Los Angeles County.

Transportation Unit
This program unit includes coach operators, route supervision, street operations, and service delivery (fixed-route) operations of the Department. It is responsible for carrying out the policies, processes, and procedures necessary to supply the actual operations and supervision of fixed-route service, including carrying passengers from boarding points to destinations in a manner that is safe, courteous, and as expedient as possible. The Transportation Unit provides mass transportation as an alternative to the use of private automobiles and as a dependable means of transportation to individuals who rely entirely on public transportation services.

Equipment Maintenance Unit
Provides equipment maintenance and preventative services to all vehicles and equipment operated by the Department to insure against road failures and "down-time" of vehicles to the greatest extent possible. This unit is charged with the responsibility of handling routine and unexpected maintenance and repairs within the fiscal limits predetermined in the budget. In addition to meeting the equipment maintenance needs of the Department, the Equipment Maintenance Unit is also charged with the responsibility of maintaining clean and attractive equipment and handles compliance assurance and reporting on related mandates.

South Coast Air Quality Management District - This program receives monies from motor vehicle fees, which are expended on programs to reduce air pollution in compliance with the implementation of the California Clean Air Act. (See Departmental Special Funds for budget.)

PUBLIC SERVICE GOAL: To provide affordable and convenient public transportation service as part of an area-wide effort to achieve traffic congestion relief, reduce highway costs and demand through the mass transport of passengers; to conserve energy and natural resources; to assist in the improvement of air quality and safety by offering an alternative to the private automobile; to assist in the promotion of economic growth, as transit investments in capital and operations support jobs and provide for millions of dollars in business revenues.